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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25805500">Give you my Wild, Give you a Child</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkmagyk/pseuds/Darkmagyk'>Darkmagyk</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Percy Jackson and the Olympians &amp; Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Children, Christmas, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Post-Canon, Relationship Discussions, Self-Indulgent, Sexual Content</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-08-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-08-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 10:56:15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,043</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25805500</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkmagyk/pseuds/Darkmagyk</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Excuse me.”</p><p>Annabeth turned to a middle-aged woman who was giving her a kind smile. </p><p>“I just had to tell you that your daughter is the cutest thing.”</p><p> Annabeth frowned, “What?”</p><p>“Your daughter,” She said, pointing to the little concession stand, where Percy and Estelle were waiting in line. Estelle was sticking out her tongue at him, and Annabeth watched Percy stick his out in response. “She and your husband are adorable together. You guys are a beautiful family.”</p><p>“Oh, no. She’s not my daughter. She’s his sister.” </p><p>“Well, you and your husband should consider having one of your own, soon. You’ll be great parents.”</p><p>Annabeth was pretty sure that was a rude thing to say. You didn’t just go up to strangers and make comments on their family planning choices. Annabeth was also pretty sure she should be kind of insulted. </p><p>But all she could think was <em>Oh</em>.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>340</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Give you my Wild, Give you a Child</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Title from Taylor Swifts 'peace.'</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Percy didn’t know what exactly he expected when they had started planning, but a successful Chase-Jackson-Blofis Christmas-Yule-Solstice had seemed a little bit like it would need a midwinter miracle.</p><p>Sure, last year’s Blofis-Jackson-Chase celebration in New York was a pretty good success, but it had also involved hotel rooms and no undead cousins. The Chase's house was bigger than anywhere Percy had ever lived, but fitting that family of four, plus Percy and Annabeth, plus Mom, Paul and Estelle, plus Magnus and Alex was a lot for one kitchen and two and a half bathrooms.</p><p>And besides that, Percy was always a little bit nervous when his family interacted with the Chases. Though they'd known each other for years, and Percy knew he’d have a hard time making a worse impression then he had that first time, where he told the guy his daughter had been kidnapped then got his car destroyed, years of accidents resulting in sharply turning opinions had made him wary that something might suddenly go wrong.</p><p>Which was dumb, because he knew, deep in his soul that Annabeth would choose him every single time. And Frederick also knew that and behaved accordingly whenever he met Percy.</p><p>After nearly four years with them in the Bay Area for school, Frederick seemed a little less worried that he was going to say the wrong thing one day and Percy was going to vanish from his life and take Annabeth with him. But still. There was always a weird tension there, Frederick trying to make sure Annabeth and Percy felt included, and Percy convinced that respected historians who went to Harvard should probably think guys who once stole a cop car and were part of national man hunts and got kicked out of 8 different schools weren’t good enough for their daughters.</p><p>But everyone was having a great time, so far. It had been four days, and other than Bobby and Mathew complaining about having to share a room temporarily, and Percy and Magnus almost coming to blows over the color blue, everything was perfect. They had watched three different Muppets Christmas specials. They had visited Fisherman’s Warf and Union Square. Annabeth and Percy had snuck away for a day for Camp Jupiter Saturnalia celebrations. And Frederick and Charlotte, who both always seemed a little bit suspicious of the kitchen which they never cooked in and which Percy was pretty sure no one had ever used until he’d shown up and cooked them dinner before Freshman year, were just about in love with waking up to famous Sally Jackson breakfasts.</p><p>It was the 22nd, and to give his mom and Paul a little time for themselves and everyone else some space, Percy and Annabeth had taken Estelle ice skating for the afternoon. She seemed a little bemused by Christmas without snow, and ice skating when it was so warm outside, but she was happy to be pulled along by one or both of them, and then even happier when Percy took her to get hot chocolate while Annabeth returned their skates.</p><p>When they came back, Estelle sitting on his shoulders and wearing a whipped cream mustache, he handed Annabeth her hot chocolate, and she just stared at him for a long moment.</p><p>He couldn’t really interpret the look on her face. Or, he could, sort of. In his experience that combination of bit lip and narrowed eyes normally mean something like horny. But they were in public, with his little sister. So that didn’t make any sense. She normally only got horny in public if there were swords involved, and maybe a little of his blood.</p><p>“What time is it?” He asked, while Annabeth buried her face in her hot chocolate, “we have to pass off the Guppy, soon.”</p><p>Bobby had decided that people loved it when a guy was good with a baby, and he had decided to test that theory by taking Estelle to a children's museum where a boy he liked worked. Percy's mom was more than happy to have the free babysitting. And so, Bobby was supposed to meet them soon and take her there until they all met up for the San Francisco ballet's Nutcracker this evening. Annabeth and Percy were thinking of heading to a bar that a friend of her's from Berkley recommended, something about good food and holiday cheer.</p><p>It was an easy enough pass off. The twins liked Estelle, and Bobby was a generally responsible sort, though Estelle did have to be cleaned up of some renegade chocolate on her face.</p><p>Once she was gone, Percy turned to Annabeth with a smile, and she reached out and grabbed his hand.</p><p>"Come on," She said. Almost aggressive. He <em>was</em> actually stronger than her on pure bench-pressing ability, but he didn't mind being dragged around. Though he wished he had any idea where they were going.</p><p>When they got to a set of single room bathrooms, he frowned a little. She didn't need to drag him around if she needed a break. Also, they'd just washed up Estelle in one of the family bathrooms at the other end of the park, he wasn't sure why they needed to do this, again.</p><p>He got a slightly better idea when she glanced around, made sure no one was watching, and then pulled him in with her, locking the door firmly behind them. </p><p>“Um,” Was about all he could say as she physically launched himself at him. He just barely caught her under her thighs and met her mouth.</p><p>He thought his 12-year-old self, caught in expulsions and a new world of dangers and a hard homelife, would have found the idea of this big family Christmas with his girlfriend and his little sister and the family he loves almost as much of a fantasy as the gods of Olympus.</p><p>But he was pretty sure his 15-year-old self, half in love with Annabeth Chase and convinced she liked someone else and he was going to die on her, would have had a heart attack at the idea of having his hands full of horny Annabeth in a public bathroom. To be fair to young Percy, this was not actually something he’d ever experienced before either.</p><p>Horny Annabeth he knew well. And truly out of her mind horny Annabeth was one of his favorite Annabeths (tied, or course, with every other Annabeth that was not in some sort of distress). Her grey eyes were blown wide, her lips were already kiss swollen and her beautiful features were pulled feral and hungry. She vibrated against his body. He loved that he could do this to her. But he had no idea <em>what</em> he had done today to inspire this.</p><p>She was never like this randomly, especially not in a public space. She popped the button on his jeans, and then on her own. From her position, she can’t really do anything else but grind against his abs, and she lets out a noise like a caged animal that he is not at all opposed to.</p><p>He was very quickly getting into it. And wondered, briefly, if Annabeth had a horny Percy she was fond of.</p><p>She jumped out of his arms, and she looks cute in her sweater and jeans, but he wished he could see the movement of her body when she did something like that. There is nothing hotter than Annabeth performing a feat of athleticism, except for maybe Annabeth doing anything else.</p><p>She kept her hands on the waistband of his jeans, and the second she was grounded, she shoved them and his boxer briefs down his legs. She eyed the boxer briefs for a moment, because they were a sartorial choice made specifically because she was into it. She’s seen him put them on this morning, of course, but he knew she appreciated it. He’d noticed her preference and did something with his appearance just for her.</p><p>But his pants had his wallet. And his wallet had the condoms he had long ago learned to always be prepared with. So, while she worked on her own jeans. He bent down to retrieve one.</p><p>“No,” Annabeth practically growled when she saw was, he was doing.</p><p>“Condom.” Percy reminded her with a smile.</p><p>“Don’t need one.”</p><p>Annabeth was beautiful, naked from the waist down, and clearly desperate from him. It was a bewitching combination.</p><p>But with a small exhale he reminded himself that while Annabeth was technically on birth control, she was really bad at remembering it. She’d switched from pills to the shot for just that reason when they’d gotten to college. But he also knew that she still forgot to get her shot every three months pretty frequently. He didn’t know if she was up to date.</p><p>He wasn’t sure how to ask without killing the mood.</p><p>Him “Umm…” probably wasn’t much better. But they couldn’t actually have sex without a condom or a conversation. “Condom.” He said again.</p><p>She smiled, because she did that sometimes when he said something dumb, and then she kissed him, because she also did that sometimes when he was being kind of dense, “We don’t need one.” She repeated. “We should make a baby, Percy Jackson.”</p><p>For a moment he couldn’t respond. <em>Sons and daughters,</em> he thought. Little Percys and Annabeths, all the best parts of both of them. He’d dreamed of such a thing for a very long time. He hadn’t even considered trying to get it now.</p><p>Annabeth was smiling softly, like she could see what he was picturing. She leaned in and kissed him again. “Put a baby in me.”</p><p>“Oh gods.” He could only moan, pulling her closer to him. Sweaters to sweatshirt, bare legs to bare legs. Not enough skin. He reached down to peel his hoodie off, and actually caught wind of it.</p><p>Purple with gold NRU on is. Right. Because they’re 21, and in college. And they probably can’t actually have a baby now.</p><p>He wasn’t sure why Annabeth had gotten like this, but horny Annabeth was a special creature who didn’t respond well to reasons. She didn’t actually want a baby right now. He just needed to distract her long enough for them to actually talk about it.</p><p>“Not in a dirty bathroom.” He said, and then before she could properly object, he sank to his knees before her, with a hand on her hip, to keep her from falling over, put a leg over her shoulder.</p><p>He licked and sucked and kissed and stroked, and rang three orgasms out of her like an old pro. No chance of baby making. Then, with a little of her help, he put them both ways. His jeans were not at all comfortable when he was this hard. But that was ok for now. They washed their hands and he considered trying to wash his knees from where they touched the tile floor. But decided against it.</p><p>He was careful to make sure they weren’t too obvious, coming out of the bathroom together into the park crowded with people. Annabeth clung to his side; a little worn out. He tried and failed not to be smug about it. Annabeth could go for hours, but she also had a tendency to get tired once they were done. That was probably one of the reasons they didn’t do a lot of public quickies.</p><p>He looked at her for a second, leaning on him with most of her weight, her smile was soft and content, but her eyes scanned the people around them, sharp as ever.</p><p>On impulse, and a deep desire to be close to her, to take care of her, he shifted, stepping in front of her and reaching behind him.</p><p>She let out a surprised squeak as he pulled her onto his back. But then she wrapped her legs around his hips and her arms around his shoulders, giggling against his ear as she lay her head down on his shoulder. She pressed a lazy kiss to his neck.</p><p>“I love you,” he said.</p><p>“I love you too,” She hummed into his neck. The buzzing of her lips against his shoulder wasn’t really a great help for his hard on. But he was so content with the weight of her on his back and enveloping him, it was well worth it. “You’re going to be a great dad.”</p><p>***</p><p>There was a picture in her Dad’s office of the two of them when she was about a year and a half old. It was her second Christmas, and they’re skating in some place in Boston. Her Aunt Natalie had taken it. She was probably about 8 months pregnant with Magnus at the time. Annabeth has no memory of any of that. She wished she did. She and her dad had matching grins. They looked happy together. She sometimes looked at it and smiled and sometimes looked at it and wondered what had happened to make everything so terrible in 5 short years.</p><p>She first <em>remembers</em> going ice skating on the lake at Camp, magically frozen for the day for just that purpose. She had fallen on her face and lost a canine in the process. Luke had just been horrified, fusing and worrying, but she’d jumped back up with blood on her lip and kept going.</p><p>She wasn’t a great skater, and neither was Percy, but they were good at things like balance and control and had done it casually plenty of time, so no one’s teeth were in any danger as they pulled Estelle alone around the ring. Last Christmas, in Manhattan, she hadn’t really been old enough for this, but now she was old enough to stay balanced as long as one of them was holding on to her, and she seemed to get a special kick out of standing between them and being pulled along with them together. Her delighted little laugh, breathy and high, was one of Annabeth’s favorite sounds in the world.</p><p>She adored Estelle. She had been at the hospital the day she was born and had been the 4th person in the whole world to hold her, after her parents and brother. She’d been at the Blofis-Jackson apartment throughout those very early months and she’s kind of expected to find the baby cute, but also a bitch and a half. She remembered pretty actively hating Bobby and Matthew at that age. With a little maturity, and without the deep gut feeling that she was being replaced, she had been pretty sure she’d love Estelle, at least because she loved Percy and Sally so much. She was fully prepared to refuse to help out with all the gross, annoying bits and to gently mock Percy for having to change diapers and burp babies and all those sorts of things.</p><p>What she hadn’t expected was <em>wanting</em> to do all those things, even when they were gross and kind of sucked, because Estelle was a little person, with Sally’s eyes and Percy’s drooling, and Annabeth liked her. Leaving her and Sally had been almost as hard as leaving camp and Chiron and all her friends.</p><p>Watching Estelle grow up was a special pleasure Annabeth hadn’t expected and watching her with Percy was a special treat.</p><p>As they left the rink, Percy picked her up and flipped her upside down, “I think this will be the most efficient way to remove her skates,” He said to Annabeth seriously, “don’t you think.”</p><p>“Absolutely,” Annabeth said, while Estelle shirked with delight. She moved in to actually untie them, avoiding the blades of her kicking legs with ease, and then retrieved their actual shoes while Percy flipped her right side up and sat down on the bench. Then they took turns holding her and putting on their own shoes.</p><p>“Chocolate?” Estelle asked when they were done. Her eyes weren’t like baby seals, which was a good thing, because Annabeth would probably be a much less effective babysitter if they were.</p><p>But “Chocolate sounds really good,” She echoed, she attempted to bat her eyelashes at Percy.</p><p>“Then we’ll have to get some.” Percy said, leaning over Estelle’s head to give Annabeth a kiss. It wasn’t even a particularly breathless or long one. But it still made her toes curl. She was an easy mark for Percy. It would have been embarrassing if he wasn’t just as easy a mark for her.</p><p>“You guys go get us some hot Chocolate.” Annabeth agreed, “And I’ll return out stakes.”</p><p>“What do you think, Stella?” Percy asked. “Do you think we should accept our quest?”</p><p>“Yes,” She cheered, and then cheered even harder when Percy picked her up again and flipped her upside down.</p><p>The laugh and smiled stayed with Annabeth as she returned the skates and then stood in the little waiting area just outside the rink, waiting for her Percy and Estelle and her hot chocolate.</p><p>“Excuse me.”</p><p>Annabeth didn’t jump, but it’s a near thing. She turned to the middle-aged woman who was giving her a kind smile.</p><p>“I didn’t mean to startle you,” She said, “I just had to tell you that your daughter is the cutest thing.”</p><p>Annabeth frowned, “What?”</p><p>“Your daughter,” She said, pointing to the little concession stand, where Percy and Estelle were waiting in line. Estelle was sticking out her tongue at him, and Annabeth watched Percy stick his out in response. “She and your husband are adorable together. You guys are a beautiful family.”</p><p>“Oh,” Annabeth said, she should turn to the woman, look her in the eye when speaking, but Annabeth was too enthralled by watching Percy with Estelle. “Oh, no. She’s not my daughter. She’s his sister.” </p><p>“Oh,” the woman sounded a little confused and a lot disappointed. And then breezed past the awkwardness and kept talking. “Well, you and your husband should consider having one of your own, soon. You’ll be great parents.”</p><p>Annabeth was pretty sure that was a rude thing to say. You didn’t just go up to strangers and make comments on their family planning choices. Annabeth was also pretty sure she should be kind of insulted. Not least because if this stranger thought Annabeth is old enough to have a kid, then she might look bad for twenty-one, and she didn’t really want to deal with that.</p><p>But all she could think was <em>Oh</em>.</p><p>She watched Percy and Estelle get the hot chocolate, and then watched Percy swing Estelle up on his shoulders.</p><p>It was perhaps the cutest thing she’d ever seen.</p><p>But it wasn’t the cutest thing she could imagine.</p><p>Because she could imagine the same thing happening, but with her and Percy’s baby.</p><p>They had talked about it of course. Marriage and kids and their future together. They had talked about it a lot. They both want those things, but it wasn’t like they made plans.</p><p>Annabeth could plan a war or a building. But she had never successfully planned a single full week of her life. Things changed and shifted and distracted her. They always had.</p><p>They didn’t even really talk about marriage in concrete terms. Every few months since they started school, one of them would ask the other if they wanted to get married and every time the other would say they did, but they weren’t sure if they should. They worry about putting themselves in Hera’s power.</p><p>They talk about kids for the future. For when things were stable (whatever that meant) and they were ready (whatever that meant.)</p><p>Right now, that changed. And Annabeth learned something. Annabeth decided something.</p><p>Annabeth wanted a baby.</p><p>Annabeth wanted Percy.</p><p>Annabeth wanted Percy’s baby.</p><p>She didn’t want the future.</p><p>She didn’t want someday.</p><p>She was ready for that all right now.</p><p>And with every step Percy took towards her, her resolve and her desire grew.</p><p>And by the time he handed her her hot chocolate, she was just about ready to get started.</p><p>They passed Estelle off to Bobby and neither of them seemed to notice what was going on in Annabeth’s head. No one probably would have guessed exactly what was going on in Annabeth’s head. They’d think her musings on children were an internal debate or a discussion. They’d think it was something she was considering.</p><p>It wasn’t. It might be a quick, impulsive decision, but she’d made it and she was sure.</p><p>So, Annabeth pulled Percy into a bathroom. She couldn’t see a reason to wait.</p><p>The man before her was perfect. She wanted him at all times, in all places.</p><p>She would agree there was something to be said for not conceiving their baby in a random public bathroom.  But without the consolation prize of his mouth, and the wrung out, blissful exhaustion that followed, she might have put up more of an argument.</p><p>As she clung to his back (because he was adorable and overprotective and gave her a piggyback ride) she told him what a good dad he would be.</p><p>Because he would be. The best dad to ever exist. She couldn’t wait to raise children with him.</p><p>It was a thought that carried her through dinner and the ballet. Watching Estelle’s rapture at the beautiful dancers swirling and twirling in glitter and satin was almost as good as watching it herself. And all the children in the show made Annabeth smile, too.</p><p>She ran her thumb over the hand that was grasped in her’s and dreamed about their baby. Would her children like ballet or Percy’s basketball and swimming or her chess and Lego club or some other crazy thing she can’t even think of right now? How wonderful it was going to be to find out.</p><p>It wasn’t that late when they got back to her dad’s house, but everyone seemed to feel how Estelle looked, which was fast asleep in her dad’s arms. So, after minimal fanfare, everyone parted ways to get ready for bed.</p><p>She managed to win the first shower, a skill gained from many years at camp, and was already curled up in her sheets when Percy finally made it.</p><p>“Any warm water left?” She asked.</p><p>“No,” Percy shook his head, his hair was washed, but dry, “But that’s never bothered me.”</p><p>He was wearing an Aquarium of the Bay shirt, and pajama pants covered in the words <em>veni vidi vici </em>because they might have been in New Rome too long.</p><p>And because he was the perfect man, as soon as her bedroom door was closed and locked behind him, he divested himself of his shirt.</p><p>“Did you know,” Percy said, “That you and your dad make the same expression when you’re impressed with the dancing the ballerinas are doing.”</p><p>“Have you been staring at my father, Jackson?”</p><p>“I do have a noted preference for older blond men,” He said, as he crawled into the other side of the bed. “I actually think it’s cute when you and your dad are all similar.”</p><p>She smiled as she rolled her eyes and then on top of him. One day, soon, she’d be able to say the same thing about Percy and their kid.</p><p>“Hi,” She said, leaning down to kiss him, chest to naked chest.</p><p>He raised an eyebrow at her, even as he ran his hands down her naked body.</p><p>“Trying something new, are we?” he asked. As a general rule, she didn’t climb into bed fully nude. But today…</p><p>“I didn’t want to waste time.” She told him, not letting herself get too distracted but Percy’s sword callused hands tracing patterns in her skin.</p><p>He smirked. It was a smile he only got in bed. She loved it, and did not want to see it anywhere else, “No wasted time, hum?”</p><p>“No,” Annabeth said, “We have a lot to do.”</p><p>“Really?”</p><p>“Yes,” She said, “we have a baby to make, so we need to get started.” She leaned down to kiss him, but he just responded by wrapping his arms around her and sitting up. Taking her with him.</p><p>His playful sexiness had fled his face. He was still a shirtless Percy, so he was still plenty sexy, but it wasn’t the direction she was aiming for.</p><p>“You keep saying that,” Percy said, slowly, looking at her intently. “What does it mean.”</p><p>She didn’t like this reaction at all, and she didn’t understand it, either. She thought everything she’d said was obvious.</p><p>“One of us,” She said, “was conceived through penile-vaginal intercourse and gestated for nine months. And it wasn’t me. So, I don’t feel like I should have to explain this to you.”</p><p>“Ok, first of all, I was not gestated for nine months, you don’t get to be the only weird magic pregnancy baby. Second of all, I had to explain hormonal birth control to you, so don’t even.” Percy said, “And third of all, I’m confused about what you want. And I never want to be confused about your desires. So, let’s start at the beginning.”</p><p>She sighed, “There isn’t a beginning. I want a baby. I know you’ve wanted to have a baby since we were like seventeen. It’s as simple as that.”</p><p>“I didn’t want a baby when we were seventeen,” He said, “I just knew I wanted to have kids with you. Someday, when we were older.”</p><p>Annabeth smiled; she couldn’t help it. And leaned in and kissed him, “Well, we’re older. No someday like the present.”</p><p>She was basically in his lap, and his hands were still on her, but they were still at her waist. All his attention was on her. Percy Jackson was a commanding, powerful presence. She knew both camps were full of people half or all the way in love with him. She thought having all of his focus on her should have been too much, maybe, or scary. She knew, perhaps better than anyone else, how powerful and dangerous this man was.</p><p>But really, the only danger she could sense was the heady intoxication that draws her in. Not because he’d use it against her, but because she knew she could use it against him.</p><p>This man would storm Olympus if she asked him to. </p><p>She never would, but she knew it was there. Love and power and lust and affection and humor and happiness and understanding and a decade of fighting side by side swirl between them.</p><p>She wanted everything with this man. A life and a family and a child (or six) and another eight decades, at least.</p><p>“You know I’m not as smart as you,” He said, “so I’m going to ask you some annoying questions in an attempt to follow your line of thought, so I know we’re on the same page.”</p><p>“You know me too well,” She said, and then kissed him again.</p><p>“Well,” He took one hand off her waist and grasped one of her own. “I know you like having the answers. So, it should be relatively painless.”</p><p>“Alright.”</p><p>“You want us to have a baby?” He said. “That is, right now, you want us to try and have a baby?”</p><p>She nodded, his lack of enthusiasm surprising her.</p><p>“You want to be pregnant, now?” She might have felt bad if his eyes had lingered on her abs, if his objection was the change to her body. But he kept them planted firmly on her face.</p><p>She couldn’t pretend she didn’t understand his question. It was true, pregnancy seemed strange and nebulous to Annabeth, foreign to her in a way that was probably pretty unique to children of Athena. But there was also something physically challenging about it. And Annabeth loved a challenge when she thought it would be worth it. And the idea of growing a person, Percy’s child, seemed worth it.</p><p>She wasn’t exactly sure how to explain all of that, “I want to carry our child.” She said. “And definitely I want a part of you with me.”</p><p>“You already have all of me,” He said, deathly serious.</p><p>“I know,” She said. “And maybe I’m selfish for wanting more for us.” It didn’t change her plan or her goals.</p><p>He was still frowning a little bit, but he leaned forward and kissed her, long and deep. His other hand rested on her cheek, keeping her close to him, even when he broke the kiss. “You aren’t selfish.” He said. He didn’t untangle their other hands, but he did lower the back of his own so it rested against her lower abdomen, like he could feel through the layers of skin, muscles, fat to her womb within.</p><p>He rested his forehead against her’s. “What about school?”</p><p>“We only have one semester left.” Annabeth reminded him, “Even if I got pregnant tonight,” She grinned at the thought, “We wouldn’t have the baby until after we graduate.”  </p><p>The frown he was giving her wasn’t one of anger or displeasure, and though it is clearly one of confusions, she knows it’s one of supreme intelligence. He was taking in all the information and trying to crack a puzzle. It was like when he looked at a battle plan in preparation for capture the flag. Only softer, probably because he thought she was prettier than a map.</p><p>“Are you sure?”</p><p>“Yes,” She said. The only thing she’d ever been this sure about was the man in front of her. “Your question makes me think you aren’t.” The idea tasted like bile in her mouth.</p><p>“Sure about you and our family and our future, absolutely.” Percy said quickly. “But right now…” He trailed off. “I don’t know. What about your future? Grad school and stuff? I don’t have a job?” He shook his head, “I don’t want to make a mistake. I don’t know. I feel like if we asked anyone else, they’d say we should wait. That we should be older. That it would be the responsible choice.”</p><p>He frowned as he spoke, scrunching his eyes together until little lines formed above his nose. Like he was repeating what he knew he should be saying, not what he actually thought, and was conflicted about it. She tilted her head and kissed him again. Because she could. Because he was Percy and she was alive, and they were here together. She leaned in closer to him. The fact that she was naked in a little act of seduction didn’t even matter. She detangled their hands and wrapped her arms around her shoulders. On instinct, or maybe desire, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in closer. She rested her head on his strong shoulder and she knew this was where she was safest in the entire world.</p><p>And she had been in some terribly terribly unsafe places before.</p><p>“We went to the underworld when we were twelve, Percy.” She said, and it came out more desperately then she meant it to, but that just made it truer. “There was nothing responsible about that. We didn’t want to; we weren’t really asked too. We were told we had to, or there would be a war. We had to, because of our parents and Chiron.”</p><p>It was awkward, speaking into her ear like this. But it made it easier. She was safe in his arms but spared his piercing gaze.</p><p>She kept going, “And the future, we weren't supposed to have a future. We’re demigods. I ran away at seven. I nearly starved to death in back alleys in Virginia. And you, you were supposed to be dead at sixteen. Everyone-everyone thought you would be. Chiron did and the gods did and even I did for a little while. No one thought you were getting any kind of future And I only had a marginally better chance at one. None of that was fair. None of that was responsible. No one gave a damn about our ages then. So, I don't know why they get an opinion now. Every single person who was ever supposed to be older and wiser than us, they had an idea of what we were supposed to be, and it wasn't responsible, and we weren't old enough and it wasn't in consideration for our future.”</p><p>“But Percy we've been to the Underworld and we've held the weight of the sky and we’ve navigated the Labyrinth and we fought <em>and led</em> two wars and we have been to Tartarus and we woke the Earth Mother. And we lived. They didn’t promise us any kind of life or future. But we have it now. We won it for ourselves.  And I refuse to not do with my life what I want. I refuse to not do something because of some arbitrary rules that have no basis on who we are as people or who we are as a couple or who we are as a family. I am so so ready for this. And I want it. And I don't think the rules that have never cared about me before should dictate that I shouldn't have it.”</p><p>She felt more than heard Percy's letting out a breath. She pressed a kiss to his neck, an assurance, though she wasn’t sure if it was for him or for her. His arms gripped her tighter. They were together, naked skin against naked skin.  The warmth of his body grounded her, and arousal licked at her. But that wasn’t important now. Soon, gods, please, soon, but not at this moment. She took a deep breath and let it out against Percy’s neck, she felt him shiver at the sensation.</p><p>“Maybe if you want me to tell you the practical things. I can. I still have that gold I got from building Olympus. I still have that money I have from selling my half of the house to Magnus, plus the rest of the money Randolph left me. We don’t have student loans or any other debt. Your car is paid for. I can call it a gap year, if I can spend at least a little time focusing on my portfolio that might even put me in better standing for grad school.  We can move back to New York and enlist all my younger siblings to come and babysit and provide enrichment. Or we can go to Boston and hire all of the Chase Space kids. We can and would make it work, people have before and they continue to. I know it will be fine.  But I also know that we've done a lot of things that weren't supposed to be fine at all. And together we've made them work; we've made them great. And I can’t think of anything greater than you and me and our children.”</p><p>She was crying by the time she was done. She didn’t even know when she had started. But the tears were free flowing.</p><p>“It’s ok,” Percy said, his hands rubbing her back with practiced ease. “it’s ok.”</p><p>She clung to him, but he didn’t say anything else. And she wondered for a second about what would happen if he really didn’t want this. Not now and not this way.</p><p>She’d have to suck it up. All of these dreams, all of her futures, were contingent on him. She was sure that wasn’t healthy, but she’d passed that point a long time ago. Probably around the time one of her best friends was turned into a tree. Or maybe when she realized her dad had replaced her in his heart and his life and his family with twins.</p><p>She was more than sure about Percy, and if he wasn’t ready, they would wait.</p><p>“How long have you felt that this way?” Percy asked after several long minutes.</p><p>“Like we are pawns of an uncaring system, and shouldn’t be held accountable by its rules?” She asked, “Probably since I was five or six” He laughed against her, and her whole body shook. “That I was 100% ready for us to have a baby?” She sighed; this was probably the best place to attack her argument. “Since today, when a random woman saw us playing with Estelle and said we’d be good parents and should have kids. And it just struck me. Because it’s true. We should have kids and you’d be the best dad.”</p><p>She waited for his dismissal, for him to tell her she should listen to random middle-aged women at temporary ice-skating rinks in San Francisco.</p><p>“Was it a goddess in disguises?” Is all he said after a few moments.</p><p> “Are you suggesting I was manipulated by the gods into wanting something I don’t really want.” It stung, partly because it <em>was</em> a possibility and she had felt so sure, she hadn’t even considered it.</p><p>“Not something you don’t want,” Percy said, “maybe something you didn’t realize you wanted, so a goddess helped.”</p><p>“You think I don’t know my own feelings?”</p><p>“Sometimes I don’t,” Percy admitted, “I didn’t know I was in love with you until Aphrodite showed up and shoved it in my face.”</p><p>“When was that, again?” Annabeth asked, just to hear him admit it.</p><p>“When we were fourteen and you’d been kidnapped.” Percy said. “And I knew there wasn’t a challenge or quest or future I wanted to face without you.”</p><p>She lifted her head, and the movement actually separated them a little, but it gave her access to his mouth.</p><p>“It wasn’t a goddess,” She said again, “I got no divine help in this revelation.” And then, grudgingly, “But she did help me realize my own feelings.” Because maybe, just maybe, she ignored her own thought and feeling sometimes when they weren’t convenient.</p><p>“Ok,” Percy said.</p><p>“Ok?” Annabeth repeated.</p><p>Percy smiled and despite the awkwardness of it, managed to use his grip on her to spin them over, laying her down on the bed under him.</p><p>His grin was smug, and only got worse when he climbed off her taking all of the sheets and blankets with them.</p><p>She watched his eyes rove over her naked body. He had known every part of her, had had her in just about every way. She should have probably left behind any sort of shyness in high school. But he always looked so in awe, she couldn’t help but blush at his attention. He of course paid special attention to her cunt and he panned down her legs twice, but he also lingered on the scar on her shoulder. Annabeth knew that objectively, she was at best passably cute, and that rested mostly on her being white and blonde. She was proud of her body as a weapon, but she knew she wasn’t the picture of feminine beauty and she so rarely tried to be. She was too muscular, her tits were small, her ass was flat, and her skin was crisscrossed with a thousand scars from a thousand wounds. She had never once successfully figured out a ‘natural’ make up look and she’s only learned to wear heels to be taller than Percy, which she had on good authority was not normally what guys were into. Percy still looked at her like she was a goddess. Percy, who’d seen Hera and Aphrodite and Athena and had been romanced by some of the most beautiful demi goddesses in the world, looked at her like she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.</p><p>And then he shoved off his pants and climbed back on top of her.  </p><p>Which might have been the most beautiful thing <em>she’d</em> ever seen.</p><p>He wasted no time, both of his hands going to her spread her thighs while he leaned down to kiss her. On a purely technical level, she marveled at the core strength it took too keep himself parallel to her without any support, on the rest of her levels, she groaned as he sank a finger inside her.</p><p>“No more talking?” She asked.</p><p>“Lots more talking,” He corrected, “I’m hoping for a lot of ‘more’ and ‘please’ and ‘harder’ and ‘I love you.’ And I plan on returning them all in kind hopefully with a few ‘yes’ and ‘gods you’re beautiful’ and that sort of thing.” </p><p>Her no doubt very clever response came out instead as a “Please.” when he crocked his finger.</p><p>So, when the buzzing broke the lust filled haze, he lost his balance and fell on top of her.</p><p>“Fuck” She moaned, not at all in the fun way, “That was my phone.”</p><p>Without having to ask, Percy reached up and grabbed it, checking the text. “It’s Rachel.”</p><p>“It is like 7:30 in the morning in Berlin,” Annabeth said. “She should be blackout drunk. What does she want?”</p><p>“To know if we’re getting married this summer.” Percy said. “Apparently she has been invited to a weird art commune for the month of June, but she won’t go if it would mean missing our wedding.”</p><p>Annabeth hurmfed at the thought, “Tell her she’s going to get Midsommar-ed.” She said, “And also, that no, we aren’t going to get married this summer, because your aunt hates us and that is not a battle I feel like fighting.”</p><p>“Don’t you mean you’re step-grandmother,” Percy said, she ignored his words to focus on what him stretching to respond to the text did to the muscles in his chest. It was doing only very good things. “Besides, if we’re having a baby this summer, we are not also getting married.” Percy said. He made a face, scrunching up his nose. It was adorable, and Annabeth can imagine it on their baby. “I do not want to go through planning a wedding up to the standards of our friends and <em>families</em> while also having a baby. I’m exhausted just thinking about it.”</p><p>She heard the clattering of her phone on the nightstand, but she was distracted processing Percy’s words.</p><p>“You want us to have a baby?” Annabeth breathed, “we can do this? Now?”</p><p>“You don’t remember this,” He said, “because I never told you it was important,” He told her everything, so she wasn’t sure where this was going, “But once, when we were in Tartarus, I was ready to give up. I was done. We were covered in death mist; all these monsters we had killed were waiting for use. I knew even if we killed them a second time, that they were going to come back again. Regenerating, always and forever. And it wasn’t quite the lowest point, but it was low.” Annabeth nodded, he was still on top of her, but she took all his weight gratefully as a reminder of survival, “And all I was thinking it didn’t matter, I could kill all of them, and they’d come back and harass my sons and daughters.” His face broke out into a brilliant grin, and he leaned down and kissed her, a strange action given the memory. “And suddenly, then and there, it was all ok.” He kissed her again and again, small peaks around her face as he spoke. “Because I knew…we had…a future together…you and I were going to have…sons and daughters…amazing, brave…smart…clever…wise…sons and daughters.” Leaned back and she could see the smile that took over his whole face, more than just a grin, it seeped into his eyes and chin, “and it was going to be perfect. Gods and monsters couldn’t keep that from us.”</p><p>“I remember thinking something like that,” Annabeth whispered, and she’d had her epiphany today, but she’d also known, for years, that this was what she wanted, “I remember thinking Bob was going to die, and that there was nothing we could do. But then I realized we can. We can remember him, and we can tell the story to our children, and he can come back, too.”</p><p>The future had seemed so far away in Tartarus, but also so very possible. She and Percy talked at length about some bits of Tartarus and firmly ignored others together over the years. In many ways, it wasn’t the worst thing that had happened to them, not compared to their eight-month separation, not compared to holding the weight of the sky. But to know that this too connected them was a gift she didn’t think she would ever forget.</p><p>“We’re going to try and have a baby?” She asked again. Just to be sure. Just to know this is real.</p><p>“Not try,” Percy said, “We are going to have a baby. Or, you’re going to do the having, and all the other hard parts. I’m just going to put it there and then be at your beck and call for nine months.”</p><p>“Promise?”</p><p>“On the riv…” She cut him off with a kiss.</p><p>“No,” She said, as she pulled away, “You don’t get to do that to me. You do not get to endanger yourself pointlessly for me.”</p><p>“Pot meet kettle,” Percy said, which was fair. She knew, deep in her bones, all the great and terrible things she would be willing to do to Percy. And she knew he would never want her to have to. He kissed her again, and shifted up on this knee, a hand trailing down her body again.</p><p> “No sacred oaths,” Annabeth suggested.</p><p>“It is too late for that,” Percy said, “It was too late for that a long time ago.”</p><p>He didn’t say ‘it was too late when I fell into Tartarus with you’ because he knew she still held guilt over that, though he had told her countless times that it wasn’t her fault, and he wouldn’t trade anything for that trip with her. But that’s what he meant.</p><p>Who cared if they couldn’t get married because of Hera? In some ways that was old news. She had been draped in white, Percy had vowed “We’re staying together” and she had returned the sentiment in kind. Then they had taken the plunge.</p><p>“This is the logical next step,” He said, like he could read her mind. “And I can promise that our children are going to be the greatest thing we do together.”</p><p>There were no more inconvenient texts, though the house full of immediate family members did mean they needed to be things like quiet and respectful of others.</p><p>In return for not making a big deal out of what was clearly happening under his roof, they did try not to rub it in her dad’s face, like they’d done with Sally before.</p><p>But it was hard to remember sometimes, when she was wrapped up both in and around him.</p><p>When they were done, he kept her in his arms, which was fine with her. Where else would she ever want to be in the world (all nine of them?)</p><p>“I hope we’ve done it.” She whispered, lifting one of their entwined hands to rest on her lower abdomen. She’d actually have to google more about this tomorrow, make sure she could track the signs, and also see if they needed to do anything else going forward to give them a better shot.</p><p>He kissed at the side of her face that was already resting nearly on his lips, “I don’t think it’s really a one and done kind of thing,” He said. “I mean it can be, but I don’t think it should be. I think we’ll need to keep trying and keep trying at least for a little while.”  His hand went lower, just because it could, and because Percy was a little bit insatiable when it came to get her off, “And then maybe even after that, and after we’re sure, and after that, too.”</p><p>She giggled as she came again, even though she already felt worn out from the baby making proper.</p><p>For so long it felt like they had been dreaming of the future, setting things up and hedging their bets and praying for things to work out.</p><p>But this felt like the future, the reward for all their efforts. Something they wanted and something they could give themselves.</p><p>It probably was a little much to expect it to happen tonight and given that they certainly weren’t going to be slowing down going forward, they’d never be able to tell.</p><p>But it was ok, because Annabeth was building something. And that was always her favorite thing.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Check me out on <a href="http://darkmagyk.tumblr.com/">tumblr</a>.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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